Who Owns Etsy and Will It Eventually Sell Out?

Etsy is an e-commerce marketplace and community for unique and one-of-a-kind goods. It's the go-to website for individuals looking for gifts made by small businesses and independent craftsmen and sellers.

Since part of Etsy's mission is to support the local business marketplace, it hasn’t "sold out" to any other major corporation yet. Etsy Inc., the same company that the founders established in 2005, still owns the website. It’s a standard business practice for companies to sell out for millions of dollars, which highlights Etsy’s integrity as a company.   

Although Etsy's integrity may lie within the dedication to its mission, it has used some questionable tactics to claim its base of operations.

Etsy is a U.S.-based e-commerce company headquartered in Brooklyn, New York. The company’s U.S. office runs the day-to-day business functions and hosts several artists, writers, photographers, and technical workers.

However, Etsy also runs a subsidiary office out of Dublin, Ireland. Although there isn’t anything illegal about this, it’s a sneaky tax tactic. Physically, Etsy is a U.S. company, but when tax season rolls around, the company is headquartered in Ireland. Etsy pays significantly lower taxes than it would pay if it filed in the U.S.

Between the two headquarters, Etsy employs about 1,276 people. 

Robert Kalin, Haim Schoppik, and Chris Maguire founded Etsy in 2005. They launched Etsy using their existing company. The founders and developers completed the website in two and a half months. Etsy received financial support from several investors including Union Square Ventures and the founders of Flickr. 

Later, Jared Tarbell and Maria Thomas joined the founding team. Thomas became the COO in 2008. Eventually, she became the CEO. In December 2009, Thomas left Etsy and Rob Kalin took over as the CEO until July 2011. 

John Silverman is Etsy’s current CEO. He has been running the company with the Etsy Inc. board of directors since 2017.

Etsy is owned by Etsy Inc.—the original parent company. Etsy hasn’t partnered with or been bought by any other company since its inception. Instead, Etsy has done the buying. The company acquired several other e-commerce sites including A Little Market and Blackbird Technologies. 

Despite facing significant competition from websites like Amazon and eBay, Etsy has remained a major player in the e-commerce sector for years. Etsy stands out as a vast network and community of buyers and sellers. The company dedicates its web space to local businesses and artists.

Etsy hasn’t swayed from its original mission or its original company. As long as Etsy remains its own entity, it will likely stand strong as a mainstream marketplace for independent sellers.